No problem, I will not contact CNBC. But if a dozen or so members did contact CNBC and Jim Rodgers than that could turn this market around w/ one interview. The world does not know about MCC yet. However, may old community has many coin dealers and they all have Chinese coin collectors so MCC last a few hours in their stores now instead of sitting on the shelf for 6 months. The public is awakening to MCC. Rare, old, real, funky Chinese artwork has a real future too. I am also searching for Chinese stuff. Have more old coins, artifacts and stamps to look at in a few days. All it takes is one good score to turn our financial picture around. The days of easy money in this market will someday end as more particpants enter the market for coins, artwork, etc. So far, we are ahead of the pack. Keep collecting!...........

The expected price was a small fraction of the final price. Wealthy people are nervous, and they want somewhere safe to put their money. The usual order of things is like this:

1. Art goes crazy.2. Antiques go crazy.3. Bullion and coins go crazy.

The period of time between each of those step can be anywhere from a few months to a few years. Since this is the second time through that cycle in the last decade, I think the timescale has been compressed to months. The time horizon I use is about 6 to 18 months.

A computer mother board (Apple 1) sold for over $200k in 2010 and this one on Sothebys is expected to match that. In fact this one is completely original as oppose to the one from 2010 and I would not be surprised if it fetched a lot more. People sometimes just have to much money.

Apple wouldn't need to stay in business for that to remain valuable. Thomas Edison's products are quite valuable despite the fact his business is no longer in existence. The people of early Apple, Microsoft, etc might be viewed similarly to Thomas Edison, in the future.

IMO, this is a FAD with no real justification for such a price. Apple is the name of the day loved by all the media. With this kind of money you can truly purchase works of arts by well known centuries old artists.

Rare and important collectibles are routinely exceeding auction estimates by several multiples. Common collectibles are routinely selling for fractions of auction estimates. It pays to buy the best you can afford. I don't think it's a fad, I think it's a trend. That Apple 1 computer is a very significant part of early computer history. Someday it could be truly shocking what it is worth ($375k isn't shocking to you already).

I seem to remember an early 1950's surfboard selling for over $500,000 during the last few years. If a surfboard can do that, I see no reason why a computer can't do that and more, given the same amount of time and equally obsessive interest among buyers. Important early cars might be a good example of technology that has a large base of wealthy auction fanatics that keep prices unbelievably high. Cameras too. Airplanes, surgical equipment, microscopes...

The only technology that seems to routinely sell for peanuts is industrial production equipment, particularly agricultural. I've seen important industrial equipment that played pivotal roles in winning major wars, and they can't even be sold for scrap metal prices. You have to pay somebody to haul it away, and take that out of the scrap metal value.

It's possible that even important computers might be viewed that way in the future. That is the primary reason why all computer technology has a low survival rate. It does its job, then it gets discarded - often at high expense as hazardous waste. If only I had a bigger crystal ball... :)

The first consumer computer was the Scelbi & Mark IBM 5100 1974/1975, the Apple 1 came out a couple of years later. Apple was not the first consumer computer and those prices cannot be justified. Right now everyone is riding the Apple wave, and behold if anyone publicly happens to say anything bad in the media about Apple, their job may be on the line. That's what IMO has driven prices up for anything that is "Apple vintage".

If what I consider a collectible to be just that, it cannot be common. Sometimes, actually often, buying the best you can afford is not always the best way to go. I look for "rare", and "important" collectibles before people figure out that they are indeed rare and important. It can take only one instance to make up for all the wrongs in trying to identify an important item. The money spent on those wrongs for the most part would be insignificant because no one wanted them in the first place so the risk \ reward ratio would be in your favor. Learning the history and culture of a particular item regardless of country of origin is key in identifying future gems.

Excellent insights from you, once again! That is absolutely true, the best investment is often the unpopular things that people don't bother to preserve. That same phenomenon occurs in all hard asset markets. You have given us many examples in books, coins, and probably other things I have forgotten about.

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